It Rhymes With Lust!

I cannot say how long ago I first became aware of It Rhymes with Lust, but I've been wanting to read it ever since. I bought a copy a while back, but just now got around to doing it justice. And it's worth the effort. This is one of those early precursors to what has been called in recent times the "Graphic Novel". It was written by Arnold Drake and Leslie Waller. I first became aware of Arnold Drake almost from the beginning of my comic reading days when he was at Marvel writing books like The X-Men and creating characters such as The Guardians of the Galaxy. I later learn he was the co-creator of Doom Patrol and one of my favorite DC heroes Deadman. 

(Artist Matt Baker)

The art is by Matt Baker with inking by Ray Orsin. Baker is a legendary comic book artist, a black man working in a field which was not at the time all that open. He was a master of the "Good-Girl Art" style, a style which suited the noir-style story of It Rhymes with Lust perfectly. I daresay it is admiration for the work of Baker which has kept this particularly title from falling into obscurity. 

The story is an attempt to do something a bit different in comic storytelling. Comics having been long targeted to a young audience actually has always had the chance to appeal to a broader audience. In the late 40's and early 50's this was understood before the field was laid waste by do-gooders and prudes. It Rhymes with Lust is a classic noir story of men and women caught in the throes of their passions and falling prey to the weaknesses which tragically define mankind all too often. It takes place in place called Copper City which is seemingly run by a man named Buck Masson. When Buck dies his widow Rust takes the reins of his endeavors and uses her wiles and wits to keep control of the political machine. A man from her past named Hal Weber arrives in town on her request and is installed as the editor of a local newspaper. That paper pretends to be against the political machine but it's a ruse. Standing in the way of Rust's ambitions is Audrey Masson, Buck's daughter by his first wife. Needless to say, we get a love triangle among these three vibrant individuals. 

(Bette Davis)

(Lizbeth Scott)

(Alan Ladd)

In an effort to ground this work, the characters are based on real people, specifically actors. Rust is based on Bette Davis. Audrey is based on Lizbeth Scott and Hal is designed around the looks of Alan Ladd (though they add a few inches to his height). The whole effort by Drake, Baker and the others is to deliver a one hundred plus page package which feels like a hybrid between a comic book and a paperback novel. The work is divided into five chapters as the action builds slowly but inexorably. 

Hal is a hard guy to root for as in much of the story he is a man besotted with Rust Masson. He also seems to have a drinking problem which not too much is made of, but it accounts for why this new job means so much. Anytime he decides that his morals cannot withstand the kinds of things she demands of him, he approaches her and falls under her spell again and again. In the noir tradition he is a man who is prisoner to his passions and despite knowing full well that he's doing bad, continues. 

Rust for her part is the strongest character in the book, at least in the early going. She schemes and knows that her sexual powers can deliver the kind of treatment she demands. She is clearly a woman who resents the role of women in the broader society and so seeks to make herself as powerful or more powerful than any man. Despite her devilish ways, she's hard not to admire in some limited way. Audrey is always noble, but also being attracted to Hal and is always trying to convince him do the right thing. While the reader knows she's right, she doesn't have the focus of her stepmother. 

This is a story of crime and some degree of violence, though that is pretty sanitized. A bombing is dealt with dramatically, but the victims are never seen. While there are attempts at murder, they seem rather lackluster really until the finale of the story which sad to say becomes a tad over-the-top so to speak. I won't say anymore so as not to spoil the end of a pretty dang good story, but I wish the creators had hewed a bit closer to the actual noir tradition in terms of how things wrap up in Copper City for our main characters. 

But still and all it's great to get this under my belt at long last. This work was hard to find when I first learned of it a few decades ago now, but has since been reprinted by Dark Horse and others so a copy shouldn't be difficult to locate, and it shouldn't cost that much. Originally selling for twenty-five cents, I paid around fifteen bucks for my copy. 

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The Web Of Crime!

Audiences have always cottoned to heroes who are resolute and have the courage of their convictions. The Shadow was such a hero, and he was rough and tough and very successful, so much so that imitators came into being. In The Spider, a vintage pulp hero published originally by Popular Publications beginning in the 1930's they found a hero who was not afraid to take the law into his own hands like The Shadow, in fact he was quite ready and willing to hand down death sentences to those he deemed worthy.  The Spider as written by Norvell Page and others is the best of those, following the model but being just different enough to garner his own following. This month I want to spend some time with The Spider and explore his grim menacing world. Thanks to publishers like Moonstone, Baen, Vanguard and others, there is a lot of great Spider material out there, from reprints of the original pulps to new novels and short stories, and even comic book and movie serial adaptations. Below are some of the works I'm hoping to get to this month. 

But The Spider did not fight crime alone. There are plenty of other vigilantes who took a bite out of crime and I'd like to visit and revisit with some of those distinctive agents of justice. See below for a chamber full of options such as Lone Justice, The Black Beetle, Monstermen, and The Dreamwalker. 

And sometimes telling the difference between the good guys (or gals) and the bad ones can be a little difficult. Hardboiled dicks come in all genders it seems as we see with the classic It Rhymes with Lust by Arnold Drake and Matt Baker, Fiction Illustrated's Schlomo Raven by Tom Sutton and Chandler by Jim Steranko, Ms. Tree- Deadline by Max Allan Collins and Terry Beatty, and Johnny Dynamite by Pete Morisi. 

And crime can strike anywhere, even the "most magical place on the Earth". So, it seems only appropriate to check out the devious doings of Mickey Mouse's arch enemy The Phantom Blot. The Blot debuted in the Mickey Mouse comic strip but proved popular enough to even get his comic book series from Gold Key in the 1960's. 

Crime makes for good anthologies as well as evidenced by DC's Greatest Detective Stories Ever Told and The Mammoth Book of Best Crime Comics. Both tomes have delightful surprises between their mysterious covers. 

And look for an overview of the early career of Marvel's famous crime crusher, the Punisher. Frank Castle rose to fame in the pages of The Amazing Spider-Man and took the world by storm, shot by shot. These early tales allow a reader to enjoy the evolution of Marvel's toughest character. 

And I want to take a little time tomorrow to talk about the late great Steve Ditko who gave us two of comics most relentless crime fighters in The Question and Mr. A. Mr. A's stories have most recently been gathered together in the pages of Avenging World. 

And I mentioned Max Allan Collins earlier. He's a fecund writer of mysteries of all kinds and some of the ones I enjoy most are a trio of stories he fashioned which take a look at infamous crimes committed within the comics community, or perhaps might have been. 

And then there's more film such as the hard-nosed Blade Runner which adapts Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip K. Dick with gritty determination. Also on hand is the somewhat more tongue-in-cheek trio of tales about Trancers which features a tough as nails detective named Jack Deth of all things. Also look for the movie Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow a strange movie which has an even more bizarre connection to The Spider. 

That's a lot on my plate this month of Thanksgiving, and there's more I haven't mentioned. But we in America like to eat hearty during this month. So, strap in and come with me down some pretty dark crime alleys at Dojo this month. But be sure to keep your heads down amigos, the bullets are flying. 

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Seven!

Princess Of The Sea!

Just by chance I happened across this beautiful 1986  comic book cover for the one and only issue of  Weird Romance by the painfully underrated Brent Anderson. 

It covers a reprint book and the story which inspired this one first appeared in Weird Thrillers #3 with an exciting pulp painted cover by Alan Anderson, 

A few years later it was reprinted in the thirteenth issue of a comic dubbed Nightmare sporting a Matt Baker cover. So very good artists have had a go at selling this story entitled "Princess of the Sea" to the comic book reader. 

It's a mighty fine example of how good comics can look when they try. Check out this link to the complete Sy Barry illustrated yarn. 

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New Year's Eves!

I looked and it seems I promised that this month I'd give you all a glimpse of my favorite super dames in countdown form. So being a man of my word (mostly) I am here on this final day of the year to comply with my personal list of favorite daughters of Eve. Above is the vivacious Black Canary as rendered by the late great Alex Toth.

I always liked the Canary in her JLofA appearances when she stepped in to take Wonder Woman's spot. She held her own with the big hitters and wore fishnets to boot.

Mantis is next. The mysterious maiden was the concoction of Steve Englehart and Don Heck, but this drawing by Dave Cockrum is my favorite. She was a martial artist with a deep hidden past it seems almost no one could discover, but eventually they did and she became the "Celestial Madonna" of all things.

One of the remarkable things about Mantis is that she has other identities across the comics multiverse. She goes where Steve Englehart goes.

She is named Willow in the DCU when she appeared in an issue of JLA written by Englehart.

And she's named Lorelei in Eclipse's Scorpio Rose.

Karnilla the Norn Queen always captured my fancy and her long-standing attempts to win the admiration of Balder the Brave showed that even a woman of her substantial gifts could be smitten low by the power of love. Balder always seemed more than a minor dimwit to me for constantly rebuffing Karnilla's advances -- I'd have not been so strong.

Marvel Girl was one of my earliest crushes in comics and what's not to like with that flaming red  hair and that amazing mini-skirt. Her telekinetic powers were sometimes difficult to showcase on the page, but her beauty never was. 

Even a budding talent like Barry "Not-Yet-Windsor" Smith hit it out of the park in his debut comic. This full-page shot of Jean Grey is an all-time fave.

Over at DC the arrival of that delectable Supergirl from another Earth really shook things.

Linda Danvers had been quite retiring but Power Girl was far from that and her abilities were really more than any man could stand.

Vampirella won hearts from the minute she showed up at Warren to drain them.

This blood-sucking babe from the depths of space came to Earth and soon enough began to solve mysteries and battle demons all while wearing an impossibly scanty outfit and some knock em' dead high-heeled boots.

Phantom Lady was one of the original dynamite babes, thanks in no small measure to the talent of Matt Baker. She wasn't the mightiest of heroes but she looked the best at doing it.

She became Nightveil at Bill Black's AC Comics and a founding member of Femforce which includes super babes such as Ms. Victory, Tara, Dragonfly, Stardust, and many more. This comic always sat on the edge of being a little too risque for my tastes, but in the 90's it found the perfect balance and became a real must-read for me. Alas in more recent years the appeal is not something I cotton too all that thoroughly.

Batgirl  had her million dollar debut at just about the time I was discovering comics and I fell for the "Dominoed Daredoll" almost instantly.

She had the additional advantage of being real, as portrayed by the late and lovely Yvonne Craig. We miss you Yvonne.

Jezebel Jade caught my heart when she brandished her weapon in early episodes of Jonny Quest. She looks downright luscious when drawn by the late-great Dave Stevens.

But Stevens was only enhancing the beauty that creator Doug Wildey had invoked upon her fromthe very beginning. Demure, deadly and decidedly a dame for the ages.

The Black Widow has found much fame in recent years due to her outstanding stints in the Avengers movies as portrayed by Scarlet Johansen. She comes close to stealing everyone of those Marvel flicks she's in, if she doesn't actually do it. Beginning as classic femme fatale she adopted the fishnets to fight against and alongside Hawkeye and the Avengers early in her career.

And then she decided to change it up with this sleek design by John Romita. I'm not sure, but it's entirely possible I went through puberty between pages eight and nine of this particular issue of Spider-Man that gave a glimpse of the new Black Widow.

The Fourth World was not complete until without warning Big Barda made the scene in issue four of Mister Miracle. She was a no-nonsense broad who had battled with the best and worst of them. Tested she look great in her armor.

And she looks even greater out of it. This splash page by the late Jack "King" Kirby might well have made many a young lad simmer along with "girl watchers' in the panel.

When Barda decided to take a bath (thanks to Marvel Evanier who needed to write one more page for the comic) the world and moi fell absolutely in love with the future Mrs. Free. Sigh.

But it will likely come as no surprise to any regular reader of this here blog that my favorite dame of all is the vivacious Nova Kane (real name Katrinka Colchnzski), college student, exotic dancer and the paramour of the space-faring E-Man. The bold personality of Nova won hearts and minds from the first panel when E-Man needed a place to land in the pages of Nick Cuti's and Joe Staton's mighty comic.

She became his partner in all ways some few issues later when superpowers became hers. E-Man might be retired and Nova with him, but she will live forever in the depths of this fanboy's beating heart.

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